I love the Hamza>Fire On The Mountain and I agree with most of the reviews here, only Stella Blue is out of this world from the first note to the last. I can feel the energy of the ancient pyramids and that unique location. I have read that these Dead shows were the first time the local people were exposed to electrified music which must have blown them away! I love the audience sounds from this show. I have also read that some local people showed up on camels and observed from the outer limits. Thank you!

This Olin > Fire > Aiko is really sublime! Not rushed at all, very dreamy and soulful. Maybe it was simply too dangerous to be messing around with the devil’s dandruff in Egypt!

I was born during this show

Too bad sunrise isnt on there that was the last time they ever played it

How totally mind-blowing is this? In the history of mankind, will there ever be something quite like this? A bunch of rock musicians going to a completely different culture out of the blue, throwing a concert, and jamming with local musicians from this culture - speaking their musical language, live, onstage, in the moment? Truly un-fxcking-believable. The highest honor any musician could hope to achieve.

I am really diggin this sound. It is really slow campared to any other shows I've heard. I like the Ollin-Fire, but I really enjoyed the Shakedown-not much singin and more Jerry riffin.

this is the most important show of 1978 hands down, toping 1/22/78, redrocks, new years, anything from november. this is the second shakedown, and embodies all that could have been in 1978, getting jerry back to an exploritory guitar, it sure doesnt sound like the travis bean, it sounds like the wolf, he lets his notes ride a bit, and echo, it's graceful, not rushed or crowded, and highly inspiring, you can hear the solo extend with very little limits, this shakedown has what the dark star on new years doesnt, the ability to calm the band and focus it to something very 1968-72.

worth the listing, it might change your idea of 1978

email me at fieldhouse11277@hotmail.com happy to share with inspired listeners.

Overall a very nice show, but I was very put off by the end of Deal with Donna's atrocious vocals.

Just the Candyman is worth a listen. Hard pressed to find a better version..and I'm not too big a fan of this song. Jerry's solo is flawless and made the hair on the back of my neck stand up and listen too!!!
Had a boot of this 20 years ago. Good to track this down.

The reason Fire is such a great song is that Mickey's drum parts are infused with Phil's bass line. Mickey and Phil have the melody (or counter melody) while Billy lays the foundation. Good example of this is the Dead in 1980 Radio City.

Read Bill Graham's autobiography where they are in the desert with the crew and the pranksters, camel riding in sunset and bill who used to be a waiter in the Catskills, having a waiter war with mickey as they bus trays with one hand in the desert nite.

Good setlist, solid performances. I really like the Arabic folk music--adds a nice sense of setting to the rest of the concert.

If you check my reviews, you'll see I'm a Fire collector. This one is definitely in my list of top 9 Fires. How to describe its particular mood? Dreamy, at turns aggressive, bright, yearning.

Deadheads I am asking for help from anybody for a copy of this show my email is alsouissi@hotmail I would be grateful for your help thank you

yea this show is always one that i keep around my stereo- these shows in Egypt really have a different feel to them. The highlight for me is the jam in Shakedown>Drums. It's mindblowing and spacey and just plain old beautiful! lol
seriously if you close your eyes it feels like you're drifting up the nile. thumbs up for this one

One of the best shows of the year. The band sounds charged up and fresh. The playing is tight and the vocals are good for the most part.

This show has a very good first set in a year with a lot of lackluster first sets. The opening Bertha is better than most in '77. Highlights in the first set also include Candyman and a revival of Row Jimmy Row. Jerry does some nice work on Deal, though Donna gets a bit out of hand at the end.

The second set is not the typical fare, starting with the Hamza El-Din, a Sudanese musician who plays Nubian and Arabic music. He does several songs. The band joins in on the last, with Jerry playing the African melody -- very interesting stuff. This slips into Fire. The Iko is top notch, and there's some nice guitar work on Miracle. This show had the very last performance of Sunrise, but it's not included here in this recording. There's a nice Stella Blue in the "Wharf Rat slot."

The sound balance is good but not perfect, though still better than audience recordings.

The Olin > Fire is EPIC. The Dead on an entirely new level. Since you can no longer DL it here you'll have to go out and buy that huge GD box set w/ every Dead album ever made (the end of Shakedown Street features the Olin > Fire from Egypt). oh wait....we're boycotting....you're screwed. happy streaming though.

Imagine enjoying some of the middle east's finest h(<7>)ish and dancing with your sweet thing in front of the Spinx on this fine September evening.

A-Salam - aliakum

this show is the reason we can listen to 100 diff versions of deal and lots of others..the guitar work in this show is unique...espcially on deal and a great ramble on rose

Sluggish. And you can barely hear Phil's bass, or the background vocals. Around the five minute mark, after the jam, Garcia seems to miss his vocal entrance (twice)(or, it's mixed so low you can't hear him).

They do the turn again at 6 minutes, but bid the verse adieu, and end up plodding along. A quick fade out/in at 8:56. There's no drive here. Garcia does a few interesting things, but the improvisation feels forced. Contrast with 11-20-78, or many versions with Brent.

history and band accounts say the first 2 nights are garbage. They finish strong however. Must have pretty amazing being there though

and im not a fan of the song. something about this version hits me though. the way the drums are patterned with that sustained bass sound.

if you want this show for the novelty of it (IE they are playing at the foot of a pyramid) then by all means pull it down to your collection, however, if you were to hear this show, and it was listed at any other venue in the states, it is only an average show with very few highlights. The vocal levels are turned way up on this version which would be a good thing if not for Donna-Jean...she is more offensive than usual here. The Ollin Arageed is mildly interesting with Jerry contributing some decent improv. 3 *'s but only because it is interesting to imagine the boys playing in front of a bunch of Egyptians at the base of a pyramid. 2*s if you don't factor that image into what you are hearing.

Sound is crisp, but the levels are off (heavy on the guitar, billy and phil a little lost in the mix). Don't expect too much from this show.

one of the cleanest sounding shows i've downloaded from this site. the show is nice too!
it's amazing that the best sounding show came from the other side of the planet!

Clearly the best of the Egypt stand. Solid sound, mix and performances.

The Ollin Arrageed>Fire is suberb.

Too bad "final" Sunrise is missing.
Still worth the download, though....

Certainly the best of the Egypt shows, with the band playing much better and tighter than the previous two nights. However, it is still a little below par compared to other '78 shows. The band are having a great time for sure but perhaps the heat is making their fingers slip or something. Still a must-have for the collection of any self-regarding deadhead all the same :-).

this show is just unreal. the recording sounds great. they are playing with real emotion its so crazy. the mood is really set and its in Egypt. thats the clincher right there..5 stars to my favorite Grateful Dead show ever. may not be considered one but to me its magic.

Good Sound Quality, really enjoyed the fire/aiko on this one! Good Show.